


Stand and Deliver Your Heart

by dracocake



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2019-07-07
Packaged: 2020-06-24 07:41:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19719211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dracocake/pseuds/dracocake
Summary: “I saved your life because I’m honorable.”Prince Nathanael looked up at the blonde highwaywoman in disbelief, leaning back where he was perched on a fallen tree, and crossed his arms.“How can you be honorable? You hold innocent travelers at swordpoint in exchange for their gold. You’re a thief,” he finished dismissively.---My first fanfic, hope you like it!





	Stand and Deliver Your Heart

“I saved your life because I’m honorable.”

Prince Nathanael looked up at the blonde highwaywoman in disbelief, leaning back where he was perched on a fallen tree, and crossed his arms.

“How can you be honorable? You hold innocent travelers at swordpoint in exchange for their gold. You’re a thief,” he finished dismissively.

The woman visibly bristled at his words and her left hand twitched to the pommel of said weapon.

“Bee is a necessity to my survival. We can’t all be born into royalty you know.”

“You named your sword _Bee?_ ” He laughed. “Why?”

Her cheeks reddened and she all but stamped her foot as she whined.

“Becausemyenemiesfeelhersting,” she rushed out. “Ugh! Go back to cowering in fear, would you?”

She was referring, of course, to the events just that morning when his carriage had been attacked. Not by her, but by a group of ruthless bandits. Nath had to admit that if it weren’t for her intervention, he would be dead. She had disarmed the bandit about to swing at him and made them surrender him over while their companions were too busy looting to notice.

Nath couldn’t bring himself to mourn the trunk of jewels he had been traveling with. It was a gift from a neighboring king who hoped to bribe Nath’s parents into marrying off their son to his prepubescent daughter. He did mourn the loss of his coachman and guards, however, who had likely perished in the surprise attack.

Nath’s eyes found those of his savior as he remembered what she had called him.

“How did you know I was royalty?” he asked.

“I eavesdropped on the bandits,” she answered smoothly. “As I said before, I was following them to see if I could join in on the fun. But instead I got you,” she sighed.

Her explanation was a little too convenient for Nath, and he pressed further.

“How could _they_ have known my identity? And why kill me, rather than ask for a ransom?”

The woman hesitated before glaring at him.

“How am I supposed to know? They didn’t exactly spill all their secrets for me to listen in on. Anyway, we should go. They’ll probably realize they made a mistake and come after us, so we need to keep moving.” She regarded him for a moment.

“What shall I call you? Your highness?” she asked, rolling her eyes.

Clearly that was not an option.

“My name is Nathanael. But call me Nath, since I owe you my life and all.”

His admission seemed to please her and she smiled for the first time since meeting him, a dazzling display that made his heart skip a beat.

“I’m Chloe. Now, here’s the plan…”

______________________________________________________

They stopped in a town a few hours later on their way to the kingdom’s capital. Nath had completed ⅔ of the journey before being attacked and they would likely reach his home in less than two days. He had offered to go to the nearest guard station and let Chloe off the hook but she forbade it.

“Going to the guards will be the first thing those bandits expect from you. You’ll be snatched up before you can raise your fist to knock on the door,” she had insisted, pulling him along as she purchased provisions in the local marketplace.

He had opened his mouth to argue but she shoved some jerky into his hand, perhaps to shut him up, and the growling of his stomach made him drop the subject. Despite his readiness to argue, it was definitely possible that the bandits had predicted where they would go and, being on horseback, could very well have beaten them there.

Nath looked around for suspicious characters but the surprisingly large crowd bustling between stalls made it difficult to focus on anything other than avoiding being separated from Chloe. He kept one hand on her cape to keep up as they moved through the throngs of gossipy townspeople and haggling vendors.

He had been surprised to find a young woman around his age underneath Chloe’s black mask when she removed it upon exiting the forest. She had snapped at him to stop staring and strode on ahead, not waiting for him to catch up. He had been studying her face, but not because she was actually quite beautiful, but because there was something familiar about it, especially those piercing blue eyes. He knew it would bug him for the rest of their travels.

Nath pushed away his thoughts as he and Chloe finally left the marketplace. He let go of her cape and sped up so he could walk next to her.

Just as he was going to ask what their next move would be, a hand came around his face to cover his mouth, and he felt another circle his waist. His cry was cut off as his assailant dragged him into a nearby alleyway. Nath tried to look for Chloe -he had sworn she was right there- before being pulled further into the shadows. He struggled to escape and look for her but the person who held him fast had an iron grip.

A familiar voice whispered harshly by his ear.

“Stop making noise! I noticed we had a tail and hid us to shake them.”

Nath stopped moving, relieved to find that it was Chloe who had dragged him from the street. She was most likely talking about the bandits. They had anticipated where he and Chloe would go and had come to recapture him.

His eyes flicked to the sunlight filled street just as a figure stalked over to the entrance of the alley. The rough looking bandit peered into the darkness of their hiding spot, but Chloe quickly angled them so that her dark cape covered the blinding ivory color of his clothing. He heard the sounds of the bandits footsteps grow fainter and felt Chloe relax at his back.

Just as he was coming to terms with how close they were standing, she let go of him and stepped away. He instantly missed her warmth and shocked himself into silence from the thought.

“Come on, before they double back,” she said. He followed without a word.

______________________________________________________

After leaving town the two had little trouble avoiding their pursuers and took to talking to pass the time. Chloe was careful to reveal no personal information about herself but he learned all the same that she was fierce and intelligent, and seemed to cling to her sense of honor despite the nature of her profession.

She even admitted that escorting him all the way home was to prove to him that she was honorable, though he wasn’t sure why his opinion mattered so much to her. He noted with growing interest that she was too well spoken and her clothing too fine for her to have been born a peasant. During the breaks in conversation Nath wondered about the life she had led before turning to robbery.

As they got closer and closer to the end of the whole ordeal, Nath found that he had really begun to enjoy Chloe’s company and although “aloof” was largely her manner of choice, he knew that she had laughed genuinely at his jokes and valued his insight into whatever topics they discussed.

He mulled over the right words to ask her to stay all the way to the castle gates, but when she kissed him on the cheek and offered a simple “so long,” he choked.

The sight of her fluttering cape imprinted itself in his mind for the next week as he dug into the castle archives, hoping for some kind of answer to why she had seemed so familiar.

After hours of poring over dusty tomes, he found it.

In a more recent book detailing the family trees of the kingdom’s noble houses, Nath found the same aquamarine eyes looking up at him from one of the portraits accompanying a particular page’s list of names. Chloe the thief was actually Chloe Bourgeois, the only child of the disgraced Bourgeois house. She had once visited the castle before and all the kids had been pushed together to play. He didn’t remember much about her except the careful way she regarded everything with her quiet gaze.

Nath also couldn’t remember what Chloe’s parents had done to earn an exile to their summer manor, but it likely happened not long after the miniature portrait of the family was painted. Chloe looked to be about nine, her scowl evident and timeless, as she had also worn it when he questioned how she knew he was a prince.

He groaned inwardly. Even children living in exile learned all about the royal family and knew their faces. She must have hated saving him, he thought sadly, for what his family had done to her. It would certainly explain why she had become a highwaywoman. Being cooped up and angry had driven her to seek adventure and revenge. She could take from the very people who had stood by while her family was sentenced.

Fragile hope suddenly bloomed in his chest. If she knew who he was, why be friendly with him? Why joke around or make conversation? She could have silently delivered him home without a backward glance or, honor be damned, left him at the first guardhouse in sight and wash her hands of him forever. Instead, she had seemed to want him to think well of her, and she had kissed him…

Nath felt a rush of determination as he picked up the book and made his way to his parents’ study. He had some matters to sort out and a woman to find.

______________________________________________________

_5 Weeks Later_

Nath paced the length of the parlor room, glancing at the door every few seconds as if expecting it to burst open at any moment. When the door did move, it was slow and measured, and a servant appeared. They bowed their head before speaking.

“Your Highness, she’s arrived at the castle. The guards will be bringing her here momentarily.”

Nath thanked the servant and watched as the door closed behind them. Ever since he had received a letter from one of the teams he had sent out to find Chloe, he was a bundle of nervous energy. She had been captured while trying to pick the pockets of a governor and had been traveling in the custody of a dozen armed men for days. She was most likely furious.

He shuddered to think of the full extent of her anger but his hands grew clammy from the possibility of something far worse: hatred. He wouldn’t be able to bear it if she came all the way to the castle only to dismiss him from her life entirely.

Even though he had persuaded his parents to pardon her, he couldn’t force her to embrace living as nobility again, attending balls and having to be around him. If she truly hated him he would let her go without any more fuss, and damage his own heart in the process. For even though he had only known her for a few days, he could not stop thinking of her. The haughty way she flipped her hair when she knew she had won, the fluid motions of her body as she fought, her sword becoming an extension of her arm. Even small things like the fact that she had given her dangerous weapon a cute name. All of these things had utterly charmed him and he wouldn’t be surprised if he fell in love with her after knowing her for another couple of days. If he could get that much from her, he would be forever grateful.

As if aware that he had mentally come back into the situation at hand, a firm knock sounded on the door. Nath stopped his pacing and clasped his shaking hands behind his back.

“Enter,” he called, managing to keep his voice steady.

The door opened and there she was. Albeit a bit disheveled from swift road travel and being marched along by the two guards who had a hold on her arms, Chloe looked heavenly. Her mask and hat were gone, allowing her golden hair to flow freely. Her pursed lips parted in shock as she registered Nath. She quickly overcame her surprise at seeing him in person again and frowned, her eyebrows knitting together in a mix of anger and confusion.

“So this is how you repay someone who saved your life.”

The statement-not-question was spoken calmly but Nath could tell that there was hurt behind her words. All the practiced things he was going to say to her went out the window as he offered a tentative smile.

“Would you believe I did it because I missed you?” he asked softly.

She was so stunned that she just watched him for a moment. She opened and closed her mouth before looking pointedly at the hands on her arms and then back at him. Nath blinked and nodded.

“Oh, of course. You two may go now. Thank you.”

The guards released Chloe, who rubbed her arms and called back to them as they closed the door behind them.

“I better find Bee in mint condition after this, or we’re going to have some issues!”

Nath realized at that moment that she didn’t have the sword strapped to her hip and its absence seemed to alter her overall appearance dramatically. He didn’t know if he preferred the highwaywoman get up or if Chloe would look more enchanting in a gown. He had no time to imagine it as Chloe marched towards him. He put his hands up and spoke in what he hoped was a soothing manner.

“Before you say anything I just want you to know that I’m sorry, for everything. For your family being exiled and you having to save me, and for dragging you back here. I didn’t know how else to find you.”

He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. Chloe stopped close enough so that he could see the road dust on her cheeks. He held back the urge to wet his thumb and wipe it away. Instead he watched her, waiting for a response. She continued to frown, but the flare of rage from earlier seemed to have vanished completely.

“I heard what you did, getting the king and queen to pardon me. I don’t know if I’m ready for that life yet but...thank you,” she said.

She pushed back the hair falling into her face and launched into her story.

“I was so angry when we first moved away. I didn’t care about anything other than pay back for what had been done. But after the first couple of years, I wasn’t angry anymore. It just...ran out, and I was left with no purpose, no drive.”

She looked away and her hand went to the sword that wasn’t there. Nath figured it was something she did to reassure herself, having seen it happen before so many times. Chloe continued speaking, letting her hand drop to her side.

“That’s why I was so obsessed with being honorable. If I couldn’t justify attacking carriages for revenge, I would do it for justice instead. I kind of ended up becoming like Robin Hood actually,” she said, laughing nervously. “But I never actually used Bee to hurt anyone. It wouldn’t be right. And then you came along and I couldn’t let you die. And even though your parents punished mine, I couldn’t hate you. I knew that had been justified too, I just didn’t want to see it.”

Chloe blew out a puff of air and met Nath’s gaze again.

“I guess what I’m trying to say is: I forgive you.” She then abruptly punched his arm, causing him to wince and rub at the spot. “But don’t ever send hordes of guards after me again. I haven’t had a full night’s sleep in a month, you jerk.”

Chloe then smiled as she took his hand and stepped in closer. “So, are we going to kiss for real, or what?”

Nath was all too happy to oblige.

\---Fin

**Author's Note:**

> This started out as just a drawing idea but then I figured I should flesh it out a little more. You can find the accompanying art for the first few sections on my blog dracocake.tumblr.com. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


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